8/16/12

If it weren't for stale death sequences and dilatory padding, Blood Cult would be one of the finest SOV (that's "shot on video," for the uninitiated) genre romps ever committed to tape. The plot is markedly simple. A creaky, doddering sheriff is entrusted with the task of solving the brutal campus murders of two young women. He notices that a flaxen-gold medallion is left at the scene of each crime. As it turns out, the image impressed upon the emblem bears a striking resemblance to the symbol of an antiquated blood cult (!). And that pretty much covers the 89-minute running time, save for the big reveal. NOTE: The big reveal is neither big nor revealing.

SOV specialist Christopher Lewis does wonders with a wispy, attenuated budget. The camera angles are - for lack of a better term - cinematic. All of the nighttime shots are swabbed in a navy blue lacquer that nuzzled my eyeballs. It's worth mentioning that I watched this atmospheric slasher on VHS, so some of that warmth may not translate to DVD. I can't say for sure. The acting is sharper than expected, considering that the cast is bounteous with amateurs. Unfortunately, the pace collapses at inopportune times. Blood Cult should have been pared down to a spry, sturdy hour of methodical butchery. It probably won't conciliate gore nuts, but if you call yourself a dedicated horror fan, this is requisite viewing.

Try to find the United Home Video clamshell release. There is a heavenly clump of trailers after the feature presentation.

About Me

My name is Dom Coccaro. I'm an established freelance writer. I like to write reviews, but I find that it's hard to find review-writing gigs on the Internet that pay more than $0.00. I don't like being boxed in and I don't like to constantly give my writing away for free, especially if it's not on my own website. So I created this blog. I'm free to review anything I want to, though I'll be mainly focusing on horror, metal and wrestling. Often times, my review selections will seem incredibly random. Randomness is underrated. Thus, Random Reviews has been birthed from my cavernous vagina.
PS-This blog is rated R for profane language.